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Chapter One
Fourteen months ago…
Alternative music thrummed loudly, radiating off the glass and neon walls of the Reno hotspot. The crowd was mixed – both humans and other races - the kind of ‘other races’ known as fairy tales to the same humans. Werewolves and vampires, oh my – that kind of thing.
The bar Cassie Moore sat at was U shaped. The dress she wore was siren red and ridiculously short. Her dark brown hair was styled long and sleek. She was a werewolf on the prowl, and while she might look dressed to kill, to the common observer she didn’t seem dangerous.
The silver stars taped to her back said differently. One of those badge sized, well planted stars was all a warrior like herself, in the werewolf society’s Royal Guard, needed to kill one of the rebel wolf’s trying to overthrow her government. Or even one of the ‘rogue’ vampires, who gorged on blood until they were nothing but monsters.
With that thought, Cassie’s gaze lifted from the white Russian she was nursing to the vampire warden watching her from across the bar, a fellow member of ‘Blood Sport’, a task force put together in a rare alliance of their governments six months before. His long, raven hair touched his shoulders, his deeper than midnight black eyes fixed on her with an intensely possessive look that said he still wasn’t happy about her role in tonight’s mission. And for just a moment, she thought he was going to stand up and attempt to drag her out of the bar. She narrowed her gaze, silently warning him to stay where he was.
His power rushed over her, tossing the warning in her face, telling her how close he was to calling this off. Oh yeah, she wanted to kill this particular vampire, preferably with pleasure. But since she didn’t believe he’d ever trust a wolf again, not after the one that had betrayed him, and she wasn’t into pain, she’d just have to find another non-lethal way to deal with his attitude tonight. They’d just have to suffer through the sexual tension making them both crazy.
Cassie forced her eyes away from the tall, dark, and brooding vampire she wanted and would never have, to fix her attention on the wolfish male at the table to her right, that she’d been pretending to want. He was one of a good half dozen wolves in the bar, all part of the rebel movement trying to overthrow her king. Like it hadn’t been enough for their race to deal with the vicious killers, the ‘Reds’, humans infected by a wolf virus, and named because the wolf yellow of their eyes glowed red with anger. No. Now, they had to deal with the Reds and a full out civil war within their natural born race.
Cassie batted her lashes at the wolf, willing to endure an unsavory encounter with him to finally get to one of the newest local pack members, Sarah Gaylord. Sarah being the she wolf bitch, and former member of the Royal Guard, who’d been key to a foiled plot to take down the Society and Vampire Nation with one fatal attack. She’d also been Troy’s fiancée, and like Troy, a member of the two teams that had participated in the three months of negotiations between their races that had resulted in Blood Sport. Cassie might not ever earn Troy’s trust, but she was damn sure going to help her king, and her vampire, get their wolf.
Cassie turned away from the rebel bastard, baiting him to approach, her gaze seeking out Troy to find he’d moved, fighting the urge to scan for him. Afraid he’d appear any minute and blow what was about to go down. We’re too close to screw this up, she silently whispered in her mind, wishing he could hear her.
“Can I buy you a drink?” came the deep, gravely male voice not more than sixty seconds later. Proof that it didn’t take long for a male wolf to find a female wolf in a crowd and stake his claim, and this one was apparently extra eager.
Cassie wet her lips and cut him a sideways glance. “I already have one.” Wolves liked the chase.
“I’ll buy you another.”
Cassie hesitated and then turned her body towards his, her legs between them, her skirt riding high, his eyes tracing the hem. Good thing she wasn’t shy, but then, being the only female left in the guard, her assets had come in handy, and her team wasn’t beyond using them to their advantage.
“I don’t accept drinks from men I don’t know.”
His gaze raked over her ample cleavage. He had long light brown hair, and his green eyes lifted to hers. Finally, the wolf got above her neck. “Then perhaps we should get to know each other better.”
She considered him a moment. “Perhaps.”
He leaned on the bar, his body inches from hers. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“For starters,” she said. “It’s not sweetheart,” she lowered her voice and added, “Wolf. Or do you have a name?”
His lips twitched. “Jack.”
Bingo. Just who she thought he was. The leader of the local rebel operation. Her informant was getting the bonus she had promised him. Cassie laughed. “Jack.”
“Something funny?” he half growled in irritation. “Wolf.” That was meant to put her in his place, as a female beneath him.
He could kiss her ass, Cassie thought, and smiled. “Jack Nicholson played the wolf in the movie ‘Wolf’.”
He seemed to relax. “Never saw it.”
“You should.”
“Maybe we’ll watch it together.”
“Maybe,” she agreed.
“You haven’t told me your name.” His gaze traveled to her cleavage again.
Cassie shifted slightly so that her leg now touched his, just right of his zipper. “Ann,” she said, giving him her middle name.
“Ann,” he repeated, settling his hand on her knee. “What brings you to Reno, Ann?”
“Looking for work.”
